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Dissecting the leaders debate

Well, wasn’t that a party?

The federal leaders’ televised English debate didn’t exactly live up to the hype (not mine, at least). They never do, do they?

No party leader really won. No party leader really lost, unless you happen to consider the maintaining of the status quo a loss.

Te biggest winner may have been the federal party leader who wasn’t invited to participate, the Greens’ Elizabeth May.

Go ahead, laugh. Perhaps I’m being too harsh.

But if you squinted a little while you watched and turned down the volume just enough, you could be forgiven for thinking you were smack dab in the middle of some bad acid flashback. Wait, is this 2004 all over again?

As was the case in past debates, most of the barbs last night were directed at Conservative leader Stephen Harper. The PM took a few shots but nothing that could be considered a fatal blow. He’s a good liar. Can’t put it more simply than that.

In the absence of a gotcha moment, debates, the experts will tell you, rarely change how people are going to vote.

But while this debate didn’t deliver in the drama department, issues were raised and discussed. I got that after watching the debate a second time on CBC’s website. It may still be a defining moment in the campaign, or not, depending on which of the party’s wins the post-election spin game.

Yup, that’s what it is for our electoral system. It’s not about ideas anymore. It’s a marketing strategy.

A few of the highs, lows and in-between moments:

Biggest surprise Jack Layton. While the weight of expectations were not as high on the NDP leader as on his Liberal counterpart, Layton’s performance was somewhat laidback. We get that he doesn’t want to be seen as part of the “bickering” but he didn’t distinguish himself like he needed to.

Worst part The format of the debate. Can the video questions and let’s get back to a panel of attack dogs from the Ottawa press corp. I mean, six questions? That’s it? And that guy from B.C. with that lob about crime? Kick me in the head please.

Worst part (take two) Stephen Harper’s fear mongering with his many variations on the phrases, “Canadians don’t want an election. The economy is too fragile.” What an arrogant ass.

Most disingenuous moment Harp again. Denying he met in a hotel room in Montreal with the “separatists,” as he likes to call the Bloc, to sign a coalition agreement in 2004. Stevie, your name is on the letter of agreement.

Best jab A tie between Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe. Layton to Harper: “Don’t know why we need so many prisons when the crooks seem so happy in the Senate.” The “crooks” Layton was referring to are the two Tory Senators charged with election spending misdoings. Duceppe to Harper: “Harper is soft on crime – on people in his own office.” Bada boom.

Most overworked line “That’s simply not true,” which was uttered by all the leaders, Harper mostly, on more than one occasion. In each case, of course, the assertion that preceded the line was of course true.

Biggest gaffe Steve Paikin as host. Sorry. I know he was constrained by the format, but took till four minutes left in the two-hour debate to ask a follow-up question of any of the candidates.

Say what moment Layton during law and order portion of the debate in which he uttered the words “bling” and “hashtag fail” in the same sentence. The Twitterverse went bonkers. The cretins in Calgary were confused.

Not the smoothest duck Ignatieff on the question of his spotty attendance in the House – according to Layton, Iggy was away for votes 70 per cent of the time. The Lib leader ducked the question in the post-debate press conference as well.

Body language (bad) Harper, ginning that god awful grin every time he was being broiled by one of his opponents.

Body language (good) Harper again – holding that imaginary box in front of him to keep Bad Stevie, his mean alter-ego, from coming out. And looking directly into the camera to respond to those embarrassing questions, like that contempt of Parliament charge and that leaked AG’s report into G20 spending. Did the Conservatives mislead Parliament? Oh yeah. But you wouldn’t have known it by the way the PM stared into our living rooms.

Body language (just plain off) Ignatieff, after that line that the NDP couldn’t win power. Iggy placed one hand on exaggerated hip and the other on podium as if preening for babe votes on an imaginary beach somewhere.

Worst dressed Duceppe. Maybe it was the powerful television lights but that over-sized suit jacket was too shiny by half. Paikin’s yellow tie a close second.

Most focused Ignatieff. Had the presence of mind to get back to the question at hand more than the other leaders once the free-for-alls started getting off track. Had the most packaged lines and delivered them enough times to make his point. (Family Pack? Sounds good. Is that like KFC?)

Brownie points Layton for mentioning the ongoing (forgotten?) war in Afghanistan. And the issue of proportional representation. An idea whose time has definitely come. Will hear more of this from the NDP leader to court Green vote in the coming days no doubt.

Big lie The PM (who else) on crime. Wants to build more jails. Wants mandatory sentencing for petty crimes. Doesn’t want the long-gun registry. Duh. Hunters register dogs and ducks Harp. Why not the guns?

Big lie (reprise) CBC’s post-debate At Issue panel, the most watched, we’re told, in all the land, spinning the debate yet again as a hold for Harper. Gee there’s a surprise. Do these guys ever disagree on anything? Maybe if there was someone on the left of the political spectrum among them they wouldn’t always come off sounding like some small-c debating society.

Deep afterthoughts

The PM ably deflected the slings and arrows, but still has some work to do. Out west some of the staunchest among his base still think he hasn’t done enough on the cost-cutting side. A few among his back-to-the-land supporters are freaked by the eco fallout from the Tar Sands (not so strange, but true). In Quebec, he’s all but given up the ghost, and is in danger of losing at least two seats of the dozen the party holds in the capital region, maybe more after his venomous fear mongering on a coalition anchored by the “separatist” Bloc. The many scandals alone may not hurt, but taken together, they will cause some soft Tories to vote Liberal. A majority is not in the cards, unless something cataclysmic happens ver the next few days. Look for Harp to keep playing to his right-wing base to ensure a high enough voter turnout to hold on to a minority.

Liberal leader Ignatieff held his own. There were no great expectations. The Conservatives’ attack ads have spent the last two years making him out to be an opportunist so all he had to do was put a different face on for viewers. On that front, mission accomplished. But I’m not sure whether his full frontal on democracy, more specifically the Conservatives’ contempt for democracy, scored many points. Should have been hitting that families button every chance he got. Needs to whittle into Conservatives’ lead over the next few days to seize momentum and have any chance of winning back NDP supporters if he’s hoping to take a sizable bite out of Harp’s seats.

NDP leader Jack Layton was, as always, a polished performer. He knows his stuff and has the benefit of not having changed his positions on the major issues to navigate the high ground, which is more than can be said for the flip flopping of both Harp and Iggy on a number of fronts. Layton though is burdened by the notion among the electorate, real or perceived, that this may be his last election. Has fought bravely in the face of health issues. Will no doubt continue to do so in the two weeks remaining in the campaign. Is banking on taking two Toronto seats from Libs and a few out west just lost last time to the Conservatives.

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